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A review by lisatz
East of the West: A Country in Stories by Miroslav Penkov
4.0
I read this book as sort of literary preparation for a short stopover I will habe during an upcoming trip. Miroslav Penkov is the first Bulgarian author I read and loved his way of telling stories that are so unexpected, sad and funny at the same time. This collection includes eight stories - six are set in Bulgaria while two are about Bulgarian emigrees living in the US.
The first story “Makedonija” is narrated by an older man who lives with his wife in a home for elderly people after she suffered a stroke. He finds love letters from a man who loved his wife before they married and decides to read them to his wife. The story takes us back to Bulgaria right after the end of the ottoman regime and tells the story of the newly formed Bulgaria and the war between Bulgaria and makedonija. (4⭐️)
The second story „east of the west“ was kind of my favourite. It is about a village that is split in two halves after the end of WW2. The inhabitants of the village are not allowed to cross from east to west but have a reunion festival every year where families can meet. The story follows the life of a young boy growing up in the east and tells the tragedies of his family history. (5⭐️)
Story number three „buying Lenin“ describes the exchange of letters and phone calls between a very communist grandfather and his grandson who decides to study in the US. The young man struggles between missing Bulgaria and admitting this to his grandfather while the grandfather who is a big fan of Lenin tries to invoke kn him the belief in communism. The English title of this story is so perfect - while the German one -wenn Giraffen fliegen- not only doesn’t get the point of this story but is also used as the title of the whole book in Germany. Why couldn’t they just use the same as in the US edition??(5⭐️)
Another story „the night horizon“ tells the story of a family from a Turkish minority living in the Bulgarian countryside. It is narrated by the child of the family and recounts how she survives her family. I didn’t even know there was a Turkish minority in Bulgaria and how oppressed they were/are. At one point all Turkish people in Bulgaria had to change their names into Bulgarian ones and the government even changed Turkish names on the graves. Definitely a topic I need to look in more deeply. (5⭐️)
These were my favourite stories but all the others are definitely worth a read too. The only thing that kind of made me wonder was the use of the German z-word a slur to describe members of the sinti and Roma. In one story it was used so excessively and I am not sure if this is wanted by the author or just a very bad translation. I wished for more deconstructing of racism in storytelling featuring Sinti and Roma.
The first story “Makedonija” is narrated by an older man who lives with his wife in a home for elderly people after she suffered a stroke. He finds love letters from a man who loved his wife before they married and decides to read them to his wife. The story takes us back to Bulgaria right after the end of the ottoman regime and tells the story of the newly formed Bulgaria and the war between Bulgaria and makedonija. (4⭐️)
The second story „east of the west“ was kind of my favourite. It is about a village that is split in two halves after the end of WW2. The inhabitants of the village are not allowed to cross from east to west but have a reunion festival every year where families can meet. The story follows the life of a young boy growing up in the east and tells the tragedies of his family history. (5⭐️)
Story number three „buying Lenin“ describes the exchange of letters and phone calls between a very communist grandfather and his grandson who decides to study in the US. The young man struggles between missing Bulgaria and admitting this to his grandfather while the grandfather who is a big fan of Lenin tries to invoke kn him the belief in communism. The English title of this story is so perfect - while the German one -wenn Giraffen fliegen- not only doesn’t get the point of this story but is also used as the title of the whole book in Germany. Why couldn’t they just use the same as in the US edition??(5⭐️)
Another story „the night horizon“ tells the story of a family from a Turkish minority living in the Bulgarian countryside. It is narrated by the child of the family and recounts how she survives her family. I didn’t even know there was a Turkish minority in Bulgaria and how oppressed they were/are. At one point all Turkish people in Bulgaria had to change their names into Bulgarian ones and the government even changed Turkish names on the graves. Definitely a topic I need to look in more deeply. (5⭐️)
These were my favourite stories but all the others are definitely worth a read too. The only thing that kind of made me wonder was the use of the German z-word a slur to describe members of the sinti and Roma. In one story it was used so excessively and I am not sure if this is wanted by the author or just a very bad translation. I wished for more deconstructing of racism in storytelling featuring Sinti and Roma.